Convicted sex offender Simon Levy murdered two women, raped another, and committed further sexual assaults on public transport after a series of "disastrous decisions" by police, prosecutors, and courts left him free to roam the streets. Levy was found guilty at the Old Bailey of the murders of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo, 53, and Sheryl Wilkins, 39, in London last year, as well as the violent rape of a third woman in a car park.

Levy, described as a jobless loner who lived with his mother, carried out these attacks while on bail for previous sex assaults on trains in London. His crimes, including assaults on public transport and a sexual assault on a prison officer while incarcerated for earlier offenses, can now be reported following his February conviction for those incidents.

Details revealed show that between late 2024 and summer 2025, Levy was granted bail by police and subsequently by the courts multiple times, even after being charged with sex offenses and breaching his bail conditions. Throughout this period, he was under monitoring and risk management by the Metropolitan Police.

The Metropolitan Police has acknowledged that the life of Sheryl Wilkins could potentially have been saved and has apologized to her family. The force's decision to downgrade Levy's risk assessment to women upon his release in 2024, after he had already served time for two sexual assaults, is currently under investigation by the police watchdog.

Further systemic failures included the Met closing its investigation into a rape committed by Levy in January 2025, despite him being identifiable. The force also did not classify the death of Carmenza Valencia-Trujillo in March 2025 as a murder, nor refer the case to specialist homicide detectives, until after Levy had committed another offense.

British Transport Police (BTP) faced significant delays, taking over three years to investigate and charge Levy with the sexual assault of the prison officer, a timeframe the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) also failed to expedite. BTP's own investigation into Levy's public transport assaults was also marred by delays, leading to him not being charged for over six months, despite being filmed during an attack.

Compounding these failures, both the Met and BTP returned a stolen travelcard to Levy, which he used to travel without payment and commit crimes, including his first murder. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Kevin Southworth of the Met described the situation as a "collective system failure and it is a tragedy beyond words."

Detective Chief Superintendent Pete Fulton of BTP stated that the delays in his force's inquiries were unacceptable and attributed them to incompetence by two officers who have since been reassigned. The CPS has also issued an apology for its shortcomings in attempting to have Levy remanded in custody.